Frances de la Tour

Frances J. de Lautour(born 30 July 1944), better known asFrances de la Tour,is an English actress. She is known for her role as Miss Ruth Jones in the television sitcomRising Dampfrom 1974 until 1978. She is aTony Awardwinner and three-timeOlivier Awardwinner.

Frances de la Tour
De la Tour speaking at theBritish Libraryin 2019
Born	Frances J. de Lautour (1944-07-30)30 July 1944 Bovingdon,Hertfordshire,England
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1965–present
Spouses	David Godman ​ ​ (m.1968, divorced)​ Tom Kempinski ​ ​ (m.1972;div.1982)​
Children	2
Relatives	Andy de la Tour(brother)

She performed as Mrs. Lintott in the playThe History Boysin London and onBroadway,winning the 2006Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play.She reprised the role in the2006 film.Her other film roles includeMadame Olympe MaximeinHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire(2005). Television roles include Emma Porlock in theDennis PotterserialCold Lazarus(1996), headmistress Margaret Baron in BBC sitcomBig Schooland Violet Crosby in the sitcomVicious.

Early life and family

De la Tour was born on 30 July 1944 inBovingdon,Hertfordshire,to Moyra (née Fessas) and Charles de la Tour (1909–1982). The name was also spelled de Lautour, and it was in this form that her birth was registered inHemel Hempstead,Hertfordshire, in the third quarter of 1944.She has English, French, Greek, and Irish ancestry.She was educated at London'sLycée Françaisand theDrama Centre London.

Career

Theatre

After leaving drama school, she joined theRoyal Shakespeare Company(RSC) in 1965. Over the next six years, she played many small roles with the RSC in a variety of plays, gradually building up to larger parts such as Hoyden inThe Relapseand culminating inPeter Brook's acclaimed production ofA Midsummer Night's Dream,in which she played Helena as a comic "tour de force".

In the 1970s, she worked steadily both on the stage and on television. Some of her notable appearances were Rosalind inAs You Like Itat thePlayhouse,Oxfordin 1975 and Isabella inThe White Devilat theOld Vicin 1976. She enjoyed a collaboration withStepney'sHalf Moon Theatre,appearing in the London première ofDario Fo'sWe Can't Pay? We Won't Pay(1978),Eleanor Marx'sLandscape of Exile(1979), and in the title role ofHamlet(1980).

In 1980, she played Stephanie, the violinist withMSinDuet for One,a play written for her by Kempinski, for which she won theOlivierfor Best Actress. She played Sonya inUncle VanyaoppositeDonald Sindenat theTheatre Royal, Haymarketin 1982. Her performance as Josie inEugene O'Neill'sA Moon for the Misbegottenwon her another Olivier for Best Actress in 1983. She joined theRoyal National Theatrefor the title role inSaint Joanin 1984 and appeared there inBrighton Beach Memoirsin 1986. She again won the Olivier, this time for Best Supporting Actress forMartin Sherman's play about Isadora Duncan,When She Danced,withVanessa Redgraveat theGlobe Theatrein 1991 and played Leo inLes Parents terriblesat the Royal National Theatre in 1994, earning another Olivier nomination.

In 1994, de la Tour co-starred withMaggie SmithinEdward Albee'sThree Tall Womenat the Wyndham's and withAlan Howardin Albee'sThe Play About the Babyat theAlmeidain 1998. In 1999, she returned to the RSC to play Cleopatra oppositeAlan BatesinAntony and Cleopatra,in which she did anudewalk across the stage. In 2004, she played Mrs. Lintott inAlan Bennett'sThe History Boysat the National and later onBroadway,winning both aDrama Desk Awardand aTony AwardforBest Featured Actress in a Play.She would also later appear in the film version. In December 2005, she appeared in the London production of the highly acclaimed anti-Iraq Warone-woman playPeace Momby Dario Fo, based on the writings ofCindy Sheehan.In 2007, she appeared in a West End revival of the farceBoeing-Boeing.In 2009, she appeared inAlan Bennett's new playThe Habit of Artat the National. In 2012, she returned to the National in her third Bennett premiere,People.

Film and television

Her many television appearances during the 1980s and 1990s include the 1980 miniseriesFlickersoppositeBob Hoskins,the TV version ofDuet for One,for which she received aBAFTAnomination, the seriesA Kind of Living(1988–89),Dennis Potter'sCold Lazarus(1996), andTom Jones(1997). Of all her TV roles, however, she is best known for playingspinsterRuth Jones in the successfulYorkshire TelevisioncomedyRising Damp,from 1974 to 1978. De la Tour told Richard Webber, who wrote a 2001 book about the series, that Ruth Jones "was an interesting character to play. We laughed a lot on set, but comedy is a serious business, and Leonard took it particularly seriously, and rightly so. Comedy, which is so much down to timing, is exhausting work. But it was a happy time." Upon reprising herRising Damprole in the1980 film version,she won Best Actress at theEvening StandardBritish Film Awards.

In the mid-1980s, de la Tour was considered, along withJoanna LumleyandDawn French,as a replacement forColin BakeronDoctor Who.The idea was scrapped and the job was given toSylvester McCoy.

In 2003, de la Tour played a terminally ill gay woman in the filmLove Actuallywith the actressAnne Reid,although her scenes were cut from the film's theatrical release and appear only on the DVD.

In 2005, she portrayedOlympe Maxime,headmistress of Beauxbatons Academy, inHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.In 2010, she reprised Maxime as a cameo inHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1.Notable television roles during this time includeAgatha Christie's Poirot:Death on the Nile(2004),Waking the Dead(2004), theblack comedySensitive Skin(2005), with Joanna Lumley andDenis Lawson,Agatha Christie's Marple:The Moving Finger(2006) andNew Tricksas a rather morbid Egyptologist, also in 2006.

She was nominated for the 2006 BAFTA Award for Actress in a Supporting Role for her work on the film version ofThe History Boys.

She later appeared in several well-received films, includingTim Burton's 2010Alice in Wonderlandas Aunt Imogene, a delusional aunt of Alice's, oppositeJohnny Depp,Anne Hathaway,Helena Bonham Carter,andMia Wasikowskaand a supporting role in the filmThe Book of Eli,directed by theHughes brothers.In 2012, she appeared in the filmHugo.

Until 2012, she was also a patron for the performing arts groupTheatretrain.

From 2013 to 2016, de la Tour played the role of Violet Crosby in ITV sitcomViciouswithIan McKellenandDerek Jacobi.

From 2013 to 2014, she portrayed headmistress Ms Baron in theBBC OnesitcomBig School.

In April 2016, she joined the second series ofOutlanderas Mother Hildegarde.

In 2021, de la Tour appeared in an ITV production, initially released on BritBox -Professor T.- in which she played the mother of the titular character.

Personal life

She is the sister of actor and screenwriterAndy de la Tour.

An episode of the BBC seriesWho Do You Think You Are?,first broadcast on 22 October 2015, revealed de la Tour to be a descendant of the aristocraticDelavalfamily.

Politically, de la Tour is asocialistand was a member of theWorkers' Revolutionary Partyin the 1970s.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1970	Country Dance	District Nurse
	Every Home Should Have One	Maud Crape
1972	Our Miss Fred	Miss Lockhart
1974–1978	Rising Damp	Miss Ruth Jones	24 episodes
1976	To the Devil a Daughter	Salvation Army Major
1977	Wombling Free	Julia Frogmorton
	Maggie: It's Me	Maggie
1980	Rising Damp	Miss Ruth Jones	Evening Standard British Film Awardfor Best Actress
	Flickers	Maud Cole
1983	The Bounder	Celia
1984	Ellis Island	Millie Renfrew
1985	Murder with Mirrors	Miss Bellaver
1990	Strike It Rich	Mrs. De Vere
1996	Cold Lazarus	Emma Porlock
1997	The History of Tom Jones: A Foundling	Aunt Western
1998	Heartbeat	Tessa	Episode "Bad Penny"
1999	The Cherry Orchard	Charlotte Ivanova
2004	Agatha Christie's Poirot	Salome Otterbourne	Episode "Death on the Nile"
	Waking the Dead	Alice Taylor-Garrett	Episode "False Flag"
2005	Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire	Madame Olympe Maxime
	Sensitive Skin	Sarah Thorne	1 episode
2006	Agatha Christie's Marple	Mrs. Maud Dane Calthrop	EpisodeThe Moving Finger
	The History Boys	Dorothy Lintott	Nominated –BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role Nominated –British Independent Film Awards
	New Tricks	Professor Styles	1 episode (Old Dogs)
2010	The Book of Eli	Martha
	Alice in Wonderland	Aunt Imogene
	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1	Madame Olympe Maxime
	The Nutcracker in 3D	The Rat Queen/Housekeeper
2011	Hugo	Madame Emile
2012	Private Peaceful	Grandma Wolf
2013–2016	Vicious	Violet Crosby
2013–2014	Big School	Ms. Margaret Baron
2014	Into the Woods	The Giantess
2015	Mr. Holmes	Madame Schirmer
	Survivor	Sally
	The Lady in the Van	Ursula Vaughan Williams
	Miss You Already	Jill
2016	Outlander	Mother Hildegarde	Series 2
	The Collection	Yvette
2017	Man in an Orange Shirt	Mrs March
2018	Vanity Fair	Lady Matilda Crawley
2020	Dolittle	Dragon (voice)
	Enola Holmes	The Dowager
2021	The Prince	Queen Elizabeth II(voice)
2021–present	Professor T.	Adelaide

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result
1980	Olivier Award	Best Actress in a New Play	Duet for One	Won
1980	Evening Standard Film Award	Best Actress	Rising Damp	Won
1983	Olivier Award	Best Actress in a Revival	A Moon for the Misbegotten	Won
1986	BAFTA TV Award	Best Actress	Duet for One	Nominated
1992	Olivier Award	Best Supporting Actress	When She Danced	Won
1995	Olivier Award	Best Actress	Les Parents Terribles	Nominated
2006	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play	The History Boys	Won
2006	Tony Award	Best Featured Actress in a Play	The History Boys	Won
2006	British Independent Film Award	Best Actress	The History Boys	Nominated
2007	BAFTA Film Award	Best Supporting Actress	The History Boys	Nominated
2014	BAFTA TV Award	Best Female Comedy Performance	Vicious	Nominated

Stage

Year	Title	Role(s)	Notes	Ref.
1965	Timon of Athens	unnamed parts
	Hamlet	unnamed parts
1966	The Government Inspector	Avdotya, Wife
	Henry IV, Part 1	unnamed parts
	Twelfth Night	unnamed parts
	Henry V	Alice
	The Proposal	Natalyia Stepanovna
1967	The Taming of the Shrew	Nicholas, Widow
	As You Like It	Audrey
	The Relapse	Miss Hoyden
1969	Dutch Uncle	Doris Hoyden
	A Midsummer Night's Dream	Helena
1970	Doctor Faustus	Devil
	Hamlet	Player Queen
1971	A Midsummer Night's Dream	Helena	Broadway debut
	The Man of Mode	Bellinda
	The Balcony	Bishop's girl
1973	The Banana Box	Ruth Jones
1975	The Vegetable; or, From President to Postman	Charlotte
	As You Like It	Rosalind
1979	Hamlet	Hamlet
1980	Duet for One	Stephanie Anderson
1982	Uncle Vanya	Sonya
1983	A Moon for the Misbegotten	Josie Hogan
1984	Saint Joan	St. Joan
1985	The Dance of Death	Alice
1989	King Lear	Regan
	Chekhov's Women	performer
1991	When She Danced	Miss Belzer
1994	Three Tall Women	Middle Tall Woman
1998	The Play About the Baby	Woman
1999	The Forest	Raisa Pavlovna Gurmyzhskaya
	Antony and Cleopatra	Cleopatra
2000	Fallen Angels	Jane Banbury
2001	The Good Hope	Kitty
2003	The Dance of Death	Alice
2004	The History Boys	Mrs. Lintott
2007	Boeing-Boeing	Bertha
2009	The Habit of Art	Stage Manager
2012	People	Dorothy

External links

• Frances de la TouratIMDb
• Frances de la Tourat theInternet Broadway Database
• Frances de la TouratBritish Comedy Guide
• But you're beautiful, Miss Jones:Interview
• Biography at Official Rising Damp web site